Adam Levitan

Last Minute Decisions

Week 5 Injury Questions

These bloated bye weeks reward the active owner. Those of us that are grinding the waiver wire weekly, following the injuries closely and building deep benches have a major advantage. Heck, we might even come across some very viable plug-n-plays every now and then.

As we get set for Week 5, Mendenhall is among the true game-time decisions. We’ll know his official status around Noon ET.

Each week in this space, we’ll bring you the latest line on all the hurt folks. Of course, the Rotoworld News Page will be humming all Sunday morning to bring you official word on all your players ahead of kickoff. To make sure you’re prepared, read every word of these rankings from Gregg Rosenthal/Chris Wesseling in combination with Evan Silva’s unprecedented Matchup Column.

CHIEFS at COLTS* Jonathan Baldwin (thumb) is healthy, but it’s unclear if he’ll be active. He’ll likely have to earn his role on offense by playing on special teams first. * Curtis Painter is starting even though Kerry Collins (concussion) returned to practice.

CARDINALS at VIKINGS* Beanie Wells (hamstring) was limited in practice all week. It’s only a mild concern though, as he looked 110 percent last week and isn’t known to have any setbacks. Beanie should be fine. * Todd Heap (hamstring) is headed for a game-time call after pulling up lame in practice. Avoid.

CHARGERS at BRONCOS* Vincent Jackson (hamstring) is going to try to fight through his injuries once again. He likely won’t play the whole game, but it’s hard, even impossible, to sit him. * Antonio Gates (foot) is out, as expected, Randy McMichael gets another start. * Eddie Royal (groin) remains out, giving Eric Decker more leash.

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALLPACKERS at FALCONS* Ryan Grant (kidney) practiced all week and is ready to share the load with James Starks. * Jason Snelling (concussion) is ready to resume his third-down/change-of-pace role.

SURVIVOR PICK OF THE WEEKIt wasn’t pretty, but we survived with the Bucs last Monday night. I have now used Houston, Detroit and San Diego and Tampa.

This week’s most likely winner is clearly the Giants. Seattle played a hard-fought home game against the Falcons last week and now has to go all the way across the country to face the Giants’ pass rush. I’d estimate that 80 percent off all entries remaining in Survivor leagues use the Giants this week.

I’d like to get tricky here and try to fade the Giants. But I just don’t see another choice I feel comfortable with. So we’ll try to make our move in the weeks ahead.

Some spots I would avoid include the Saints as the Panthers are on the verge of knocking someone off. We can also find a better spot for Green Bay than on the road in a Sunday Night Football game. Houston scares me in their first game without Andre Johnson.

Of course, I’ve been praying for DeAngelo Williams injury all season long. If you watch Stewart play, you can see he’s a top-5 kind of running back when given opportunities. He’s also made major strides as a receiver out of the backfield.

Ridley is certainly a consideration with Danny Woodhead (ankle) sidelined. The rookie’s snap count is on the side, peaking at 19 last week as he flashes explosive ability. I ruled out Meachem with Marques Colston back. It’s not that Meachem won’t see as many snaps -- it’s that the red-zone chances are going to come down.

In the end, I decided to go with Ridley by a hair over Stewart. Against a suddenly weak Jets’ defense, Ridley should push for 10-14 touches. And with Carolina using Cam Newton as their goal-line back, Ridley is a better bet for a score than Stewart.

These bloated bye weeks reward the active owner. Those of us that are grinding the waiver wire weekly, following the injuries closely and building deep benches have a major advantage. Heck, we might even come across some very viable plug-n-plays every now and then.

As we get set for Week 5, Mendenhall is among the true game-time decisions. We’ll know his official status around Noon ET.

Each week in this space, we’ll bring you the latest line on all the hurt folks. Of course, the Rotoworld News Page will be humming all Sunday morning to bring you official word on all your players ahead of kickoff. To make sure you’re prepared, read every word of these rankings from Gregg Rosenthal/Chris Wesseling in combination with Evan Silva’s unprecedented Matchup Column.

CHIEFS at COLTS* Jonathan Baldwin (thumb) is healthy, but it’s unclear if he’ll be active. He’ll likely have to earn his role on offense by playing on special teams first. * Curtis Painter is starting even though Kerry Collins (concussion) returned to practice.

CARDINALS at VIKINGS* Beanie Wells (hamstring) was limited in practice all week. It’s only a mild concern though, as he looked 110 percent last week and isn’t known to have any setbacks. Beanie should be fine. * Todd Heap (hamstring) is headed for a game-time call after pulling up lame in practice. Avoid.

CHARGERS at BRONCOS* Vincent Jackson (hamstring) is going to try to fight through his injuries once again. He likely won’t play the whole game, but it’s hard, even impossible, to sit him. * Antonio Gates (foot) is out, as expected, Randy McMichael gets another start. * Eddie Royal (groin) remains out, giving Eric Decker more leash.

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALLPACKERS at FALCONS* Ryan Grant (kidney) practiced all week and is ready to share the load with James Starks. * Jason Snelling (concussion) is ready to resume his third-down/change-of-pace role.

SURVIVOR PICK OF THE WEEKIt wasn’t pretty, but we survived with the Bucs last Monday night. I have now used Houston, Detroit and San Diego and Tampa.

This week’s most likely winner is clearly the Giants. Seattle played a hard-fought home game against the Falcons last week and now has to go all the way across the country to face the Giants’ pass rush. I’d estimate that 80 percent off all entries remaining in Survivor leagues use the Giants this week.

I’d like to get tricky here and try to fade the Giants. But I just don’t see another choice I feel comfortable with. So we’ll try to make our move in the weeks ahead.

Some spots I would avoid include the Saints as the Panthers are on the verge of knocking someone off. We can also find a better spot for Green Bay than on the road in a Sunday Night Football game. Houston scares me in their first game without Andre Johnson.

Of course, I’ve been praying for DeAngelo Williams injury all season long. If you watch Stewart play, you can see he’s a top-5 kind of running back when given opportunities. He’s also made major strides as a receiver out of the backfield.

Ridley is certainly a consideration with Danny Woodhead (ankle) sidelined. The rookie’s snap count is on the side, peaking at 19 last week as he flashes explosive ability. I ruled out Meachem with Marques Colston back. It’s not that Meachem won’t see as many snaps -- it’s that the red-zone chances are going to come down.

In the end, I decided to go with Ridley by a hair over Stewart. Against a suddenly weak Jets’ defense, Ridley should push for 10-14 touches. And with Carolina using Cam Newton as their goal-line back, Ridley is a better bet for a score than Stewart.

Adam Levitan is in his sixth season covering football and basketball for Rotoworld. He won the Fantasy Sports Writers Association award for Best Series in 2011 and 2009, and ESPN's overall fantasy football title in 2000. Find him on Twitter.Email :Adam Levitan